After having constructed a gaushala, municipal corporation authorities are mulling to construct a dog shelter with an aim to provide a viable solution to the stray dog menace.
The authorities have decided to construct the dog shelter on about two acres earmarked by the Greater Mohali
Area Development Authority (GMADA) for which they would be availing subsidy of Rs. 25 lakh from the Animal Welfare Board of India.

The menace of stray dogs in the newly developed sectors is more severe. These sectors are under GMADA and still have not been handed over to municipal council. Thus, the residents claim that nothing is being done by the authorities to check the growing menace. Sterilisation was started in SAS Nagar in 2005 but it did not help to check the growing menace.

The decision of coming up with a dog shelter was taken during a recent meeting of MC commissioner Uma Shankar Gupta with representatives of Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and deputy director and doctors of the animal husbandry department.

The dog shelter would be constructed as per the guidelines of government of India and for this the NGO had been asked to provide the layout of a modern dog shelter.

Once this dog shelter is constructed, the dogs caught by the authorities would be kept in this shelter after sterilisation unlike present day practice of leaving the dogs back in the area from where they were picked up for sterilisation.

Sources revealed that the dog shelter would have facilities of providing vaccination, sterilisation and stay of the stray dogs caught by the authorities. The corporation has also decided to purchase laparoscopic machine to conduct sterilisation operations on stray dogs at this dog shelter.

MC would also be roping in a private company for undertaking survey on stray dogs following which the project report would be forwarded to the Animal Welfare Board of India for release of the funds.

“There is welfare fund of the Animal Welfare Board of India that provides financial assistance to set up dog shelters. We would be sending the proposal for release of grant in about two months and start the construction of dog shelter,” said BD Singla, additional commissioner (technical), MC, SAS Nagar.